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Farirai Machivenyika and Yeukai Tazira, Harare Bureau

The Zimbabwe Republic Police has been called upon to come up with an environmental law enforcement unit to curb littering and dumping of waste at undesignated places.

This was said by Acting President Kembo Mohadi after participating at the 11th National Clean-Up Exercise held at Fife Avenue Shopping Centre in Harare yesterday.

“As we build clean societies, there is need for law enforcement agencies to intensify prosecution against littering and anti-dumping of waste on undesignated places,” he said.

“In order to ensure sustainable law enforcement, I urge ZRP to consider establishing a separate law enforcement unit. This will ultimately curb all environmental offences as you have successfully achieved in the gold mining sector. As Zimbabweans we must have a culture of cleanliness and take pride in our nation by keeping it clean.”

The acting President urged all sectors to embrace self-regulation as a principle to a clean, safe and healthy environment.

“I urge industries to adopt the extended producer responsibility principle which calls upon all generators of waste to follow their products from manufacture throughout their life cycle up to disposal without fail,” Acting President Mohadi said.

He said that a clean environment was critical for the conservation of the ecology for the benefit of future generations.

“When you clean your environment today it contributes to a very positive attitude towards a cleaner ecology for those who come after us.

“We must preserve our geographical space through a deliberate habit and culture of cleanliness. Our way of life must be concerned with resource management and environmental protection.

“We have one Zimbabwe which we have to leave for the next generation,” Acting President Mohadi said.

A number of political parties also took part in the clean-up exercise at the shopping centre.

MDC-T President Ms Thokozani Khupe commended the President for coming up with the day.

“I would like to commend the President for the initiative of bringing Zimbabwe together to clean their country because being clean is a sign of spiritual purity and goodness and I would like to urge Zimbabweans to come together and clean our country so that there is that purity and goodness,” Ms Khupe said.

Dr Patrick Mugadza of the Bethel Christian Party thanked President Mnangagwa for coming up with the initiative.

“We thank the President for coming up with a day so that we clean our country because a clean country ensures that we don’t have diseases like cholera and typhoid. This shows true leadership of

President Mnangagwa, we are doing this inclusively without following party politics,” Dr Mugadza said.

Mr Brian Mteki who contested as an independent presidential candidate said the clean-up campaign was apolitical.

“I want to thank the President for coming up with this noble initiative to clean our environment because a clean country makes us all no matter which party one belongs to,” he said.

Mr Innocent Netanyahu of the Zimbabwe Partnership for Prosperity said littering was not a responsibility of a single party.

“The litter we are cleaning is not tied to any political party but we are all responsible and at national level we can also say we are responsible for the challenges we are facing meaning we should all come together to solve them,” he said.